Red Cross officials in several Central Florida counties are appealing for more volunteers to staff their disaster shelters, a familiar story for years during hurricane season.

Several hundred volunteers are needed in Seminole, Orange, Osceola and Brevard counties, while shelters in Lake and Volusia would be adequately staffed by their reservoir of volunteers.

Estimates vary widely on how many people would flee to Central Florida should a major storm hit the Florida coast. Red Cross officials say 150,000 to 200,000 from the Tampa Bay area alone could flock to hotel-rich Orange County and surrounding areas.

''We have about 125 to 135 trained people on the list right now,'' said Jud Wood, manager of programs and services for the agency's Central Florida chapter, which has about 25 primary shelters in its jurisdiction of Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties.

''If we open all those shelters for a three-day period, we need 375 volunteers to do it the right way. But we're having difficulty getting them to come forward and take the training class.''

Ideally, each shelter would have three five-member teams working eight- hour shifts. Volunteers are needed for training in shelter management, registration, health care and mass feeding. Ham radio operators also are needed.

Volunteers are speaking to different groups in an attempt to recruit more volunteers. They say in their talks that residents threatened by a hurricane should first seek refuge with relatives or friends, then in motels, and in shelters as a last resort.

The last time Orlando-area shelters were opened in earnest was Aug. 31, 1985, when they took in 1,000 west coast residents as Hurricane Elena threatened the Tampa Bay area.

As they have for years, officials blame the shortage on apathy and complacency. The last hurricane to pass the Orlando area was Donna, 28 years ago. It caused considerable flooding and some wind damage. Brevard's last brush was in 1979, when Hurricane David hopscotched up the coast, causing considerable wind damage.

There were no serious injuries or deaths in either storm.

''The place to put them evacuees is not the big problem. The problem is getting the people to take care of them,'' said Robert Lemley, executive director of Orange County Civil Emergency Management. Should more shelters be needed, the Orange County School Board, under an agreement with the Red Cross, would open more of its more than 100 schools.

''But when you start opening too many shelters then you start thinning out the capability to operate because of the lack of volunteers,'' Lemley said. ''We try to open the largest-capacity shelters first. We also try to stick with places that have adequate parking, food, bathing facilities and the like. ''If the storm is on the west coast, then we try to locate the refugees on the west side of the county so they won't have to drive so far. A shelter's capacity is based on 40 square feet per person. If we get in a bad situation then we can go to the minimum of 20 square feet per person.''

Should the need for shelter management become critical, out-of-state Red Cross volunteers could be brought in, as well as trained employees of the state Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services or the state Division of Emergency Management.

''It would be a burden on us and probably would slow down the operation tremendously,'' Lemley said, ''but eventually we would obtain the necessary people.''

Elaine Henrich, public affairs officer for the Central Florida chapter, said the Red Cross provides ''total mass care'' for its shelter refugees -- food and emergency medical care. A shelter cannot open unless a nurse is present at all times.

''We ask the people to bring their own pillows, bedrolls or cots, something like that, and games to entertain the children. If necessary, we do have comfort kits with shampoo, toothpaste. But they will have a roof over their heads with food and water.''

Andy Keil, disaster chairman of the Brevard County Red Cross, said he needs about 150 more volunteers to work in whichever of 71 shelters he would have to open.

''Orange County has fewer primary shelters so I encourage people'' to stay in mainland Brevard County shelters in case of a hurricane, he said.

Joanne Lord, communications director for the Red Cross Mid-Florida Chapter, said Volusia, Flagler and Lake counties ''are in good shape, but we are always looking for volunteers and will be glad to train them.''

Persons wishing to volunteer can call the Central Florida Red Cross Chapter at 894-4141, the Brevard chapter at 723-2505, and the Volusia chapter at (904) 255-5444.